Medical Training

Mr. Peter Duncan:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of doctors registered in (a) the UK and (b) Scotland in the last year have trained outside the UK. [65415]

Mr. Hutton:
The information available is shown in the following table. The General Medical Council, the body responsible for the registration of doctors, does not hold registers separately for different parts of the United Kingdom.

New registrations with the GMC in 2001: place where primary medical qualification obtained

U.K.

European Economic Area

Rest of world

Percentage

Percentage

Percentage

Full registration

4,462

50

1,237

14

3,088

36

Provisional registration

4,279

94

188

4

103

2

Limited registration

n/a

n/a

2,720

Total

8,741

54

1,425

9

5,911

37

Source:

General Medical Council

Renal Transplant Services

Chris Grayling:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent representations he has received about the proposal to transfer renal transplant services from St. Helier to St. George's hospitals. [54279]

Mr. Hutton:
On 17 December 2001, I met with Lord Taverne to discuss the proposals to transfer renal transplant services from St. Helier Hospital to St. George's Hospital.

The Department has also received forty-seven items of correspondence and four parliamentary questions about the same issue.

10 Jul 2002 : Column 1039W

GPs

Mr. Hancock:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many vacancies for general practitioners there were in the Portsmouth, South constituency in (a) 1997 and (b) 2001; and if he will make a statement. [65371]

Ms Blears:
We are aware of the difficulties experienced in the Portsmouth area in recruiting general practitioners. The reply of my hon. Friend the Member for Pontefract and Castleford (Ms Cooper) to the hon. Member of 4 February 2002, Official Report, column 784W, set out what action was being taken locally. As stated in that answer, information collected centrally on staff vacancies is published on the Department's website.

Smallpox Vaccine

Norman Baker:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures were taken in awarding the contract for smallpox vaccines to Powderject, to ensure value for money. [54658]

Mr. Hutton [holding answer 8 May 2002]: Since the eradication of smallpox worldwide, new, second- generation smallpox vaccine is not a well-established product subject to normal market pricing pressures. The price quoted by all the companies involved for their products were compared against each other, and the prices were also compared with the price being paid by the United States Government for its smallpox vaccine. Prices were also compared with those for current supplies from old vaccine stocks. On the basis of consideration of all the price information available relating to similar products, the vaccine was deemed to represent value for money at the price quoted.

10 Jul 2002 : Column 1040W

Norman Baker:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health when (a) the first official contact between ministers in his Department and Powderject concerning the smallpox vaccine and (b) the signing of the contract was; and if he will make a statement. [54656]

Mr. Hutton [holding answer 8 May 2002]: Ministers had no contact with Powderject concerning the placing of the smallpox vaccine contact. The contract was signed on 11 April 2002. All meetings and subsequent discussions with the pharmaceutical companies were conducted by officials from the Department and the Ministry of Defence.

Mr. Bellingham:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the smallpox vaccine ordered from Powderject will need to be trialled before it can be used. [67546]

Mr. Hutton:
No, the vaccine can be used without clinical trials. There are currently no plans to undertake clinical trials of the smallpox vaccine in the UK. Since smallpox does not currently exist in the population, trials of protective efficacy are not possible. The EU committee for proprietary medicinal products is currently developing the requirements for the manufacture of second generation smallpox vaccine, which will include guidance on the design of any clinical trials.

Capital Projects

Ms Shipley:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many major acute hospitals (a) have been procured and (b) are being procured via the non-PFI process; what the capital value of each project is; and what stage they are at in their procurement process. [59837]

Mr. Hutton:
Since May 1997, the following schemes have been approved under the public capital procurement process.

Major publicly procured schemes operational

NHS Trust

Value (£ million)

Approved to go ahead

Operational date

Rochdale Healthcare

24.00

14 August 1998

1 August 2000

Central Sheffield University Hospitals

24.00

19 September 1998

1 February 2001

Major publicly procured schemes with tender awarded

NHS Trust

Value (£ million)

Approved to go ahead

Planned operational date

Royal Berkshire and Battle Hospital

75.00

24 August 1998

27 July 2002

Guys and St. Thomas

50.00

19 September 1998

1 May 2004

Front-line Staff

Dr. Fox:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what meetings Ministers from his Department had with members of the advisory task force on utilising front-line NHS staff; and when. [56993]

Mr. Hutton:
The national health service taskforce on staff involvement was established in 1998 to look at successful approaches to involving front-line staff and make recommendations to Ministers. It was disbanded once their report had been submitted to Ministers. The taskforce included thirteen representatives from across the NHS, a trade union and the private sector. The taskforce met the then Secretary of State for Health, the right hon. Member for Holborn and St. Pancras (Mr. Dobson), in July 1999 at the launch of the taskforce's report on staff involvement. The Department is currently working with the Modernisation Agency, the unions and NHS trusts to implement the recommendations of the report.

Director of International Recruitment for

Health Services

Mr. Burstow:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the (a) salary and (b) support costs are of his Department's Director of International Recruitment for Health Services in 200203. [66167]

Mr. Hutton:
The Department currently has no plans to recruit a Director of International Recruitment.

10 Jul 2002 : Column 1041W

The central Department team has been strengthened to enable all strands of international recruitment to be brought together and ensure that we continue to build on the success of the last 18 months using the international recruitment networks that have been established and the work force development confederations.

Primary Care Trusts

Dr. Evan Harris:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the decision-making powers of (a) primary care trusts and (b) the Department of Health in the contracting of one of the new international establishments in a primary care trust's area. [65574]

Mr. Hutton:
Work is in hand, through the Department's Directorate of Health and Social Care, with the local leadership of the national health service to identify local health economies in which international establishment schemes can respond to real and sustained capacity needs. As the prospectus notes, NHS commissioners will have a key role, in conjunction with the Department, in defining requirements from such initiatives.

International Establishments Prospectus

Dr. Evan Harris:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the international establishments prospectus, what more complex and larger-scale projects overseas companies will be involved in. [65573]

Mr. Hutton:
As set out in paragraph 4.8 of the prospectus, these projects are likely to involve a wider range of specialities, to involve more substantial capital investment, and/or to raise more complex contracting challenges than the first projects that are expected, depending on the nature of demand in local health economies to focus on orthopaedic and cataract services.

Foot and Mouth

Mr. Key:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health if the UK vaccine evaluation consortium is undertaking work on a vaccine against foot and mouth disease. [66087]

Ms Blears:
The United Kingdom vaccine evaluation consortium evaluates vaccines for use in humans. As such, it would not be appropriate for this group to undertake work on a vaccine against foot and mouth disease.